JLR sales drop 2.3% in April to 40,385 units

Tata Motors-owned Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) today reported retail sales of 40,385 units for April, down 2.3% from the same month last year.

"A small decrease in sales was seen due to two factors.

In the UK, customers purchased vehicles before the increase in vehicle tax on April 1," JLR Group Sales Operations Director Andy Goss said in a statement.

In addition, the run-out of the previous Discovery model accounted for a year-on-year decrease in Land Rover sales, he added.

"Sales will increase from this month as the all-new Discovery model continues to go on sale across the world, particularly in China and North America, two of JLR's biggest markets," Goss said.

The Jaguar brand posted record retail sales of 12,310 units in April, up 54%, driven by the ongoing success of the Jaguar F-PACE as well as strong sales of the XE.

The Land Rover saw sales of 28,075 vehicles in April, down 15.8% compared to April 2016.

The sales were hit primarily due to the discontinuation of the Land Rover Defender and the Discovery, which was only partially offset by the introduction of the all-new Discovery and continuing strong sales of Range Rover.